In the field of tooth replacement, the color composition of artificial teeth is becoming more and more important. Corresponding to the different color compositions of natural teeth, manufacturers and suppliers of tooth replacement find it necessary to offer a large number of possible colors. A color range of less than 20 different colors currently represents a minimum number for meeting the demands of patients.
As aid for choosing the color of artificial teeth, so-called shade guides are used. Such shade guides comprise a body with a plurality of insertion pockets, into which color selection pins can be inserted. These color selection pins are in turn provided with color tabs attached at one end, whose color corresponds in particular to the artificial tooth. The color selection pins (or color pins) further have a handle which can be inserted into an insertion pocket.
The color selection pins can then be composed depending on the discretion of the dental technician or dentist in any desired manner. It is also already known to design shade guides in a modular fashion. To this end, according to a certain hue, similar colors are supported in a common carrier in combined form on the shade guide.
In the field of tooth replacement, the shade guides “Vitapan classic” and “Vita 3D-Master” from Vita AG are also used. Both of these shade guides contain several color groups which differ from one another with respect to their colors (reddish, yellowish, brownish and grayish). Within these color groups, color samples differ in turn with respect to their lightness.
Another shade guide used for the color composition of artificial teeth is called “chromascop” and contains 20 different color samples. Together with the shade guide “Vitapan classic”, which has 16 different color samples, it is already possible to fabricate artificial teeth, such as incisors, lateral teeth and molars, in 36 different colors.
Most recently, however, customers have articulated requests to produce artificial teeth according to the Color samples of the “Vita 3D-Master”. Thus, approximately 20% of dentists in the USA currently determine the tooth colors using the “Vita 3D-Master”.
This leads to the problem, however, of using the new shade guides together with the already existing shade guides with the result that another 26 new colors corresponding to the colors of the “Vita 3D-Master” have to be developed and fabricated. This would mean the fabrication and storage of artificial teeth in 62 different colors, which would incur not inconsiderable costs and involve a confusing pattern in the shade guides.